Locker Room

ARTICLES ABOUT LOCKER ROOM BY DATE - PAGE 5

The Sports Xchange Duncan leaves game San Antonio Spurs forward Tim Duncan left the season opener Wednesday night with an apparent hand injury. Duncan went to the locker room early in the third quarter followed by trainer and team doctor. At the time, he had three points on 1-for-6 shooting in 17 minutes against the Memphis Grizzlies. The 37-year-old veteran is starting his 17th season with the Spurs. He is a four-time NBA champion, and he came close to winning a fifth ring last spring before the Miami Heat rallied to beat the Spurs in the NBA Finals.

The Sports Xchange By David Mundee, The Sports Xchange Auburn quickly puts away Florida Atlantic AUBURN, Ala. -- Auburn got the quick pace it wanted on Saturday night against Florida Atlantic. The Tigers scored touchdowns the first three times they touched the ball and went into cruise control in dismantling Florida Atlantic 45-10 at Jordan-Hare Stadium. Tre Mason scored on a 8-yard run on the game's first series, Corey Grant followed with a 43-yard run one play after a Owls turnover and Nick Marshall scored on a 10-yard to help Auburn build a 21-0 lead after eight minutes.

SOUTH BEND, Ind. - And all of a sudden, this was not the way Notre Dame fans wanted Tommy Rees out of a game. Not flat on his back, curled up on a swath of the new sod laid in the stadium just this week, disappeared under a cluster of concerned medical staff members. The oft-beleaguered Irish quarterback was sacked, laid out and soon vanished into the locker room, not to return with a loathed rival on the field and a hard rain falling almost on cue. After USC's visit two years ago, Notre Dame was in splinters for a week after a loss and some very regrettable public sniping that followed.

Anybody with a heart can respect the way Bears wide receiver Brandon Marshall consistently uses his star power to promote the cause of mental health. The latest example came Tuesday at Halas Hall when Marshall, afflicted with borderline personality disorder, announced plans to wear lime-green shoes against the Giants as part of Mental Health Awareness Week. Not that Marshall needs fancy footwear to draw attention to himself lately. The master of playing games with the media gave out green ties to reporters who correctly answered trivia questions about mental illness.

The Sports Xchange EditorsNote: Update 1: school announces Marshall will not return to game Georgia RB Marshall leaves game Georgia running back Keith Marshall left Saturday's game against Tennessee with a knee injury and will not return. Marshall took a hit to his right knee after attempting to make a first-quarter catch and had to be helped to the sideline. He was then carted to the locker room after trainer's examined the knee. The school announced he would not return.

After Notre Dame lost to Oklahoma on Saturday, some Irish players glumly headed directly up the stadium tunnel and into the locker room. Others lingered on the field, lining up in front of the student section for the singing of the school's alma mater, a longtime tradition. Except it wasn't a tradition any longer, and this was the first time after 10 straight home wins that the players had to remember that. " A lot of our players were confused because a lot of them had never lost at home and they weren't sure what to do," Irish coach Brian Kelly said Sunday.

Ohio State quarterback Braxton Miller left Saturday's game against San Diego State with a sprained MCL on the opening drive of the game, according to ESPN. He is out for the remainder of the game. Miller was injured after being pinned between tacklers. Miller, a junior and Heisman Trophy candidate, carried the ball on fourth-and-1 at the Aztecs' 12-yard line. After cutting inside, he was hit by defensive back King Holder and middle linebacker Jake Fely. Miller's helmet came off as he hit the ground.

Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Riley Cooper and cornerback Cary Williams were involved in a fight at practice Thursday that required several players to intervene. According to multiple reports, Cooper -- who put himself in hot water in the locker room and elsewhere when he was captured on video making racist slurs and left the team briefly in August to deal with the aftermath -- was distraught and sat out some one-on-one drills after the dust-up, which made the rounds on the Internet after a recording of the fight surfaced.

BOURBONNAIS - Gale Sayers and Brian Piccolo became the first interracial roommates in the NFL in 1967. It was considered ground-breaking during a time when racial tensions throughout America were heightened amid civil rights protests, rioting and general social unrest. After Piccolo died at 26 from a rare form of cancer, the movie "Brian's Song" depicted the emotional bond between the former Bears running backs who often joked about their cultural differences while embracing their similarities as a way to erase tension.